B-A-S-I-C

While reading the articles for the Basic Principles for On-line Journalism, I sort of got deja-vu. Last week I reacted to one of the on-line readings titled Writing for the Web – Tips. The Basic Principles for On-line Journalism basically was an extended version of the article from last week, but none the less it was still informational. Last week I specifically found the part on brevity to be useful to me, because it is something I am new to – in a way. Personally I find myself reading way more on-line articles than print – so the fact that on-line writing should be short and sweet hasn’t really settled in with me, until now.

The adaptability section was all pretty much a review. After interning for the baltimoresun.com, I am well aware of what journalists are both capable and required to do these days. I find we may have a big advantage over journalists already in the field because we are going to school and learning about all the new technological tools, while, as journalists already out there have to learn as they go.

The scanability section was informational for me because it is something that I know – but not really at the same time. I know that I scan a website whenever I go to it. I always read headlines first; ignoring most of the text underneath it before deciding which articles I want to read. I never would have really thought about this as a tool of on-line writing though. It is a little interesting how all these things factor together to make a great website. CNN.com and cbssports.com are two websites that I frequent every single day that have great scanability.

Interactivity is another section that I am very familiar with. It is obvious these days that good websites all have – and must have – more than just text. Telling a story in more than one way (video, audio, photos, etc) definitely adds upside to any type of website. Obviously if your a news website, but even say a website that sells cars. Photos and videos will obviously enhance a website.

The section on community and conversation is another section that I am familiar with. The concept of the Internet serving as a separate community is becoming very common. I frequently voice my opinion in sports forums as well as forums that have to do with music and movies. After a while, you start to see the same handles and names pop up and even though these people may live thousands of miles away – there is still a sense of community and closeness to them.